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Angle Grinder Guards

First thing I did was remove my guard, several years later, a week ago my loose flannel shirt was caught by a wire wheel. Good thing for me it had a second layer liner in it but still ripped that shirt to threads in about a second. I was lucky, no blood.

I put it back on.

A guard protects much more than shirts, you can direct the sparks as the guard will pivot around. Helped today as I was working pretty much pinned under a trailer about a foot off the ground. Could only use one hand at any time.

The guard was a life saver. Controlling sparks was a blessing. Using it as a guide for the one handed cleaning was great also. Keeping the wheel off the wood in those stressed and stretched positions would have been impossible without the guard.

Took me a few years and a near accident to realize what I have been missing. I will never remove another guard.

And I will never work laying in gravel, underneath anything so low you stay stuck 50% of the time. I hurt from head to toe.

Always pays to wear safety glasses and a face shield when you run a grinder too. Even with a face shield once I had a wire get up under the face shield and stick below my safety glasses. I still can't figure out how it found it's way there but it sure did. And wearing ear protection is a good idea too.

I did the same thing removing the guard on a 4 1/2" grinder I got from my parents working in the welding shop when I was 14.

Now I just keep the guards on the grinder since I have more to lose with a son to raise. Would only take one cutoff wheel or grinding disk coming apart to wish you had the guard on. I have nothing to prove and working without the guard on the grinder and with no ear protection doesn't prove I'm tougher to anyone.

One thing I do credit my father with always pushing was to NEVER work a grinder with your shirt tail not tucked in. Thanks to that advice I've never had too bad of an experience with a grinder, but he did tell me of a case where someone had their shirt tail get caught up in a big grinder (7 or 9") and it opened their chest cavity up pretty good.

I now opt for a full face shield in addition to safety glasses when running a wire brush. I've gotten hit too many times in the cheek with flying wires to try it without the shield anymore.

I carry several pcs. of old carpet with me. About 2 ft. x 4 ft. They help a lot when being on the ground. I use them for kneeling as well.

When you have days like you had that's when I question why I am doing what I do. Not sure I want to do this in another 10 years? But if I do I will be more selective of the work.

Well, I guess I'll look into some scrap carpet. I would imagine there is plenty that would just melt from a spark and not catch fire, kind of like the back of my head does.
I questioned the work too and told sweetthang last night it was time to start back exercising again. I feel like a square that's been rolled down a hill.

Speaking of those wires, a person could make some kind of weapon out of those things. I've pulled them out of my forehead so they had to hit bone, LOL,,, it would probably be better to use them on a weed eater far from your body.

The last one got stuck on the grinder, the part holding the wires would turn when I tried to remove it and not the threaded area. A quick tack fixed that.

I carry several pcs. of old carpet with me. About 2 ft. x 4 ft. They help a lot when being on the ground. I use them for kneeling as well.

I use a piece of 24" wide rubberized conveyor belt. It is about 1/2" thick so gravel stones become a hump instead of a knob. Kind of heavy but effective and you have to be really dedicated to set it on fire.
As for grinders.....guards on always and even with safety glasses and a face shield I get stuff in my eyes.
Meltedmetal

Other ideas-tractor/trailer mud flap or cut up a cow mat

Last edited by Meltedmetal; 04-08-2013 at 11:26 AM.
Reason: additional

You guys scared the **** of me - I have 4 or 5 grinders ALL without the guards. I have never had a problem but maybe my luck is running out....I will try a couple to see if I can still use the grinders...................

I keep one just for the wire wheel and another for hard disks, I will try those. The others with lap disks are hard to use with guards.